Computing system and method for identifying similar maps of a port of interest

Abstract

A computing system, method and computer program product are provided to present additional information regarding a map of a port of interest, such as an airport. In the context of a computing system, the computing system includes processing circuitry configured to receive an indication of a map of a port of interest and to compare attributes representative of the map of the port of interest to attributes representative of one or more maps of other ports. The processing circuitry is also configured to identify at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to satisfy a similarity threshold based upon a comparison of the attributes. The computing system also includes a user interface responsive to the processing circuitry and configured to provide information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports along with the map of the port of interest.

The invention claimed is: 
     
       1. A computing system, comprising:
 processing circuitry configured to:
 receive an indication of a map of a port of interest; 
 compare attributes representative of the map of the port of interest to attributes representative of one or more maps of other ports; and 
 identify at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to satisfy a similarity threshold based upon a comparison of the attributes; and 
 
 a user interface responsive to the processing circuitry and configured to provide information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports along with the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       2. The computing system of  claim 1 , further comprising a navigation system or a route management system that comprises the processing circuitry, and an instrument panel comprising the user interface. 
     
     
       3. The computing system of  claim 1 , wherein the map of the port of interest comprises an airport map of an airport of interest, and wherein the one or more maps of other ports of interest comprise one or more airport maps of other airports. 
     
     
       4. The computing system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the port of interest and the other ports have unstructured information associated therewith, and 
 wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to compare attributes representative of the unstructured information of the port of interest to attributes representative of the unstructured information of one or more other ports. 
 
     
     
       5. The computing system of  claim 4 ,
 wherein the unstructured information comprises a plurality of rules associated with the port of interest and the other ports, and 
 wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to compare attributes representative of the rules of the port of interest to attributes representative of the rules of one or more other ports. 
 
     
     
       6. The computing system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the processing circuitry is configured to identify at least one of the one or more maps of other ports by identifying the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports that are most similar to the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       7. The computing system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein the user interface is configured to provide information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports by providing a visible indication of one or more features of the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports for which information is provided that are in common with one or more corresponding features of the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       8. The computing system of  claim 1 ,
 wherein at least some of the attributes comprise a category and a corresponding value, and 
 wherein the processing circuitry is configured to compare attributes by comparing the category of an attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the category of a corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports and, in an instance in which the categories match, comparing the value associated with the category of the attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the value associated with the category of the corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports. 
 
     
     
       9. A method of a navigation system or a route management system, comprising:
 receiving an indication of a map of a port of interest; 
 comparing attributes representative of the map of the port of interest to attributes representative of one or more maps of other ports; 
 identifying at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to satisfy a similarity threshold based upon a comparison of the attributes; and 
 causing information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to be provided via a user interface along with the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       10. The method of  claim 9 ,
 wherein the map of the port of interest comprises an airport map of an airport of interest, and wherein the one or more maps of other ports of interest comprise one or more airport maps of other airports. 
 
     
     
       11. The method of  claim 9 ,
 wherein the port of interest and the other ports have unstructured information associated therewith, and 
 wherein the method further comprises comparing attributes representative of the unstructured information of the port of interest to attributes representative of the unstructured information of one or more other ports. 
 
     
     
       12. The method of  claim 11 ,
 wherein the unstructured information comprises a plurality of rules associated with the port of interest and the other ports, and 
 wherein the method further comprises comparing attributes representative of the rules of the port of interest to attributes representative of the rules of one or more other ports. 
 
     
     
       13. The method of  claim 9 ,
 wherein identifying at least one of the one or more maps of other ports comprises identifying the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports that are most similar to the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       14. The method of  claim 9 ,
 wherein causing information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to be provided comprises providing a visible indication of one or more features of the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports for which information is provided that are in common with one or more corresponding features of the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       15. The method of  claim 9 ,
 wherein at least some of the attributes comprise a category and a corresponding value, and wherein comparing attributes comprises comparing the category of an attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the category of a corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports and, in an instance in which the categories match, comparing the value associated with the category of the attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the value associated with the category of the corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports. 
 
     
     
       16. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, the non-transitory computer readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed by a navigation system or a route management system, are configured to:
 receive an indication of a map of a port of interest; 
 compare attributes representative of the map of the port of interest to attributes representative of one or more maps of other ports; 
 identify at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to satisfy a similarity threshold based upon a comparison of the attributes; and 
 cause information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports to be provided via a user interface along with the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       17. The computer program product of  claim 16 ,
 wherein the map of the port of interest comprises an airport map of an airport of interest, 
 wherein the one or more maps of other ports of interest comprise one or more airport maps of other airports, and 
 wherein the attributes comprise one or more runways or one or more taxiways. 
 
     
     
       18. The computer program product of  claim 16 ,
 wherein the port of interest and the other ports have a plurality of rules associated therewith, and wherein the instructions are further configured to compare attributes representative of the rules of the port of interest to attributes representative of the rules of one or more other ports. 
 
     
     
       19. The computer program product of  claim 16 ,
 wherein the instructions configured to provide information regarding the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports comprise instructions configured to provide a visible indication of one or more features of the at least one of the one or more maps of other ports for which information is provided that are in common with one or more corresponding features of the map of the port of interest. 
 
     
     
       20. The computer program product of  claim 16 ,
 wherein at least some of the attributes comprise a category and a corresponding value, and 
 wherein the instructions configured to compare attributes comprise instructions configured to compare the category of an attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the category of a corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports and, in an instance in which the categories match, instructions configured to compare the value associated with the category of the attribute representative of the map of the port of interest to the value associated with the category of the corresponding attribute representative of one or more maps of other ports.